AgriNation News Network

New Delhi. 23 March 2018

Unveiling the FICCI-PwC  ‘Maize Vision 2022’  report Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Mr. Radha Mohan Singh said that there was a need for a mix of strategies and interventions around technological innovations, promoting producer aggregation and linkages, enabling supporting infrastructure, forging public-private partnerships and appropriate policy measures.

“Forging PPP opportunities for establishment of maize-based silage making units, Skill Development Centres and farm machinery banks are the prospective avenues for investment,” he said.

The FICCI-PwC report says though India has achieved maize production of 26 million tonnes, it would require 45 million tonnes by 2022; of which, 30 million tonnes will be for feed and 15 million tonnes will be required for food, seed and industrial use. This signifies that production must grow at 15% CAGR to meet the domestic demand simultaneously, with an ambitious target to double the farmers’ income by 2022. Improving price-realisation for maize cultivators is also of paramount significance. In order to meet the desired demand levels and enhance farmer’s income, the report suggests backward and forward linkage strategies to bring paradigm shift in the crop economy.

The report recommends that the sector requires closer attention to further enhance the growth and tap the immense potential it offers. Approximately 5-7% of maize produced in India is lost due to improper storage. Promotion of Maize silos for Modern storage techniques is crucial. State Governments should promote initiatives similar to the Maize Silo Scheme of the Government of Bihar. The report also suggests that establishment of Maize based Skill Development Centers and Maize based Farm machinery banks for small and marginal farmers could be game changers. With high impetus on promotion of FPOs/FPCs in the Union budget 2018-19, crop as well as seed production clusters in select pockets of the country could emerge as formal institution like maize producers’ companies and maize seed producers’ companies.

It notes that private players should be incentivized to install maize dryers. Rapid technology adoption through scaling up of single cross hybrid and biotechnological interventions to boost productivity, facilitating producer aggregation and market linkages, supporting enabling dedicated infrastructures like seed cold storages, maize dryers, maize silos and value-added units are key future considerations identified in report.

Mr. Singh also added that these avenues need to be tapped and scaled up to increase mechanization in Maize production. Between now and 2050, the demand for maize in the developing world will double, and by 2025 maize will have become the crop with the greatest production globally and in the developing world. In India, most of the maize produced is used for animal feed and only a small portion utilized for human consumption. Its full potential, therefore, is yet to be realised, he said.

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